Monday, February 27, 2012

Jalan jalan 4 - Taiping 走透透 4 - 太平

Church of our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Taiping (137 yrs old)太平圣心圣母堂 （137年）

25-2-2012 Saturday.

We left Penang for Taiping after breakfast.

Taiping is the wettest town in the country, receiving 4000 mm of rain annually compares with the rest of the country between 2000 - 2500 mm. It rains more than 250 days of the year.

Taiping is a historical boasting many firsts, such as the first port in the country, the first prison in the country, the first zoo in the country, the most beautiful lake garden .... however, the most famous of them all : the Kemunting detention center where many political prisoners were detained without trial under the dragonian Internal Security Act (ISA). Notable ex-detainee .... Lim Kit Siang, Lim, Karpal Singh, Anwar Ibrahim, Theresa Kok..... and many Chinese education activists.

We came to Taiping not for sightseeing, but making visit to some legendary people...some sort.

We went to the home of Pauline Dorai, believed to be the longest serving legionary with 58 years of Legion membership.

Not meeting her for more than 15 years, she was surprised and touched by out visit. She was the Taiping Curia president during my tenure of my Regia presidency.

She is a retired Convent school head and still attend legion weekly meeting regularly.

After our visit to the most senior member of the Legion, we met the most junior member (in term of membership) in Taiping too.

Mary Wong is the president of 3-month old Chinese language preasidium ( a unit of the Legion) in Taiping. I was very impressed by her enthusiasm and zeal and pray for God's blessing on her and other members in their new mission.

We met Fr. Jude Miranda, the energetic parish priest, who is very supportive of the Legion of Mary.